The Great Chili Cookoff
by lovecastle89
Summary: With Daniel chronically ill from Haggerium and the stress from Keith and Allura's fast-approaching nuptials, the team needs to lighten up. Hunk thinks he has the perfect solution to bring them all together.
1. Chapter 1

**Yesterday was Mother's Day and my mom first introduced me to chili and I always loved it! I though why not write a story about it with Voltron! This takes place in Voltron Force some time after Black and assumes that Daniel tried to destroy the team, but failed. I haven't thought much about writing a story leading up to this one. Anyways, this story is mostly about the team's friendship and union. There is some humor and some romance (Keith and Allura). I hope you enjoy. I'll try to update every 1-2 weeks. Please review (you know I love those!) ;)**

 **I do not own Voltron or its characters nor do I make any profit off of this story or any of my stories. Dang!**

Lance, Vince and Pidge paced slowly and aimlessly in circles outside of Daniel's room while waiting to pay him a visit in the infirmary. It had been months since Daniel had fallen ill and progressively got worse with his Haggerium infection after he had tried to kill them all with Black. His latest manifestation of the horrid disease were large wounds encompassing many areas of his body. They required bandage changing daily and often Daniel was given pain medication which rendered him quite sedated.

The nurse wearing teal-colored scrubs with her auburn hair held up in pins opened the door a crack and then whispered to the trio whose faces were saggy with worry and concern.

"Okay, I'm done changing his dressings and I've turned him on his back. He seems to be comfortable right now. Go ahead, come in and visit with him," she encouraged them by beckoning them all in with a smile and a friendly wave of her arm.

They shuffled in and stood by the bedside while looking down at the frail form lying in the bed. Daniel's face was pale and gaunt and if his eyes had been opened, the trio would notice the dark circles around them as well as the weak, glassy expression that his amethyst eyes bore lately in his gravely ill state. It was comforting to the team that at least his breathing was calm and he showed no grimacing or sweating which would indicate he was in pain or some other discomfort. Despite the mighty gold letters "VF" which stood for Voltron Force on the wall above his bed and the gold-fringed bed comforter emblazened with colorful prints of lions, the room still felt like a hospital room. Sometimes, it even seemed like a tomb when the lights were so dim.

"The wounds are decreasing in size." the nurse said calmly hoping to brighten their moods, but Lance only gave a nod before she continued, "If you need anything, I'm heading back to the nursing station." With that she picked up her bandaging supplies and left the room closing the door carefully.

"Resting well Dan Man?" Lance asked in a whispered voice as his head bent close to Daniel's ear. Daniel moved his head every so slightly to his left with his eyes closed and his response was some indecipherable grumblings.

They stood around further watching him sleep for a few minutes and then decided to leave him be.

"He doesn't seem to be getting any better," Pidge sighed as he pulled the door to Daniel's room shut behind him.

"But the nurse said the wounds are looking a little better," Lance replied optimistically yet a little annoyed at Pidge's comment.

Vince turned his head to stare into the front window that had the drapes pulled back in Daniel's room. His head was hung low appearing sad at the deterioration of what once was his best friend still very, very ill. Now awakened, Daniel peeked over the blankets that were pulled up to his nose. He gave a weak wave to Vince who then managed a small smile, but none of the other guys had seen Daniel's gesture.

Just outside and a little way down the hall, Hunk was catching up to the three.

"Hey guys. Any change on his condition?" he asked, his brown eyes wide with hope as he stuffed his large hands in his pockets.

"Very slow improvement," Lance said meeting Hunk's eyes as he shrugged his shoulders casually.

"Well, that's better than getting worse," Hunk replied, but he shook his head sadly as he followed the others down the long hallway back to the castle. _We need some fun and relaxation around here,_ he thought to himself. "Hey guys," Hunk started to say as he thought of something suddenly before the others got further ahead of him, "Do any of you wanna play some cribbage or pool?"

"Nah," Lance replied as he shook his head and turned away.

"Maybe some other time," Vince responded as Pidge also nodded his head in agreement with him.

"Yeah sure, I'll see you at lunch," Hunk then said flatly as he then dropped his head down in disappointment.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Ugh!" Allura spat out as she made a scowling face in the full-length oval mirror in her bedroom.

"What now?" Keith asked as his blue eyes peered up from his Earth magazine. His long legs were outstretched on her pink velvet ottoman as he sat lazily on the matching wing chair.

"Ever since I turned Blue over to Larmina, I'm not working out as much. I'm not as active. I've gained weight!" She puffed out her cheeks before adding, "At this rate, I'm not going to fit in my wedding dress!" She turned to Keith, hands still on her hips. Keith could only see that she was so beautiful and noticed her beautiful curves along with that silky, gold hair up in her crown and those gorgeous intense green eyes.

"Allura, my love, you are so beautiful!" he exclaimed as he leaped up and grasped her shoulders playfully. Pulling her flush to him he then placed a long kiss on her coral lips. Gazing into the sea-green eyes of hers and placing a hand into her silken hair, he said, "Come on! What, you've got maybe two pounds to lose! You're NOT fat, now stop it! Let's just be healthy together. We've started that vegetarian diet. It's nutritious and a great lifestyle for us."

She looked back into his eyes that were the color of London-blue topaz. This handsome Black lion commander and soon to be king of Arus always knew what to say and make her feel better. "I just want to look and feel like a confidant queen and bride for our wedding day," she replied smoothing back his jet-black hair.

"Why don't we get to the gym?" Keith suggested waggling his eyebrows. "It could give you a chance to try out those new core exercises Lance taught you the other day."

As Allura turned back in the mirror, she smoothed over her royal queen's attire and then spun around to face Keith again, her motivation now pumping through her energizing her.

"Let's do it! I love you so much!" she exclaimed before giving him a huge kiss firmly on his lips. She loved how soft his lips were and that she could never grow tired of kissing them.

After changing into workout gear consisting of matching black spandex yoga pants and bright blue shirts, they walked down the hallway towards the gym. As they got closer, they could hear the clanging of barbells, huffs and puffs and grunts of those working out and of different machines with metal clanging together. The scent of sweat, leather and masculine body spray lingered in the air.

As Keith got on the treadmill, Allura nearby began her core workout consisting of decline abs. As she began to curl her upper body up, she heard Lance chatting with Keith about the visit to Daniel earlier that morning. Allura couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt cut through her. She and Keith hadn't been to see Daniel in a few days and she was longing to know how he was doing. In only a moment, the conversation turned towards the wedding plans of Keith and Allura and Allura crooked her head to listen further.

"Yeah, I haven't tried my uniform on yet for the wedding,." Lance, Hunk, Pidge and Vince were all groomsmen and Romelle and Larmina were bridesmaids. Upon hearing this Larmina joined in on the conversation of the wedding.

"I haven't tried on my dress yet." At that, Allura stopped mid-curl and got off of her bench.

"Come on all of you! The wedding is only two weeks away!" Allura responded. She realized she was starting to shriek and panic filled her.

They all looked at her sheepishly. Then Hunk wiped the sweat dripping from his brow with the towel on his shoulder and said, "Wow. We still have to get fitted for the tuxes. I'm sorry."

"Do I really have to wear a dress Aunt Allura?" Larmina asked making a sour face. "I have to walk with Lance, don't I? He's going to make fun of me the whole way!" Out of the corner of her eye, she could could see Lance putting his hand to his mouth as though hiding his chuckling.

It seemed the complaining and arguing only escalated along with their voices and Hunk, keeping silent cursed under his breath. He wished for it to stop and finally Allura put a halt to it all.

"Stop it all of you! The wedding is soon and I'm getting all stressed out.." she started until Lance interrupted.

"Ah...Don't get so stressed out Queen Bee," he joked as he strolled over in tight, red spandex shorts. Lightly tapping her face which caused her to wince slightly in annoyance, he then inclined his head at Keith and added, "Seriously, why don't you guys just take the easy way out. You know you could go to Earth or Dradin-that's actually closer to Arus, have a ceremony, get your piece of paper..boom! done! Fly back to Arus and no wedding worries. You'll both be happily married!"

"Seriously Lance?! Do you actually think we would do something crazy like that?" Keith snapped as his eyes narrowed. "Come on! Allura's royalty! A queen! I may end up as king! Maybe YOU would do that, not us!" Keith snapped back incredulously. "It is our duty to the people of Arus, the galaxy alliances, our diplomats to have this wedding as a royal event properly," Keith firmly stated, his blue eyes locked with Lance's. "This marriage of ours is more than just a what you call 'a piece of paper.'

"I was just kidding." Lance nodded, huffing then giving a faint laugh. _He's turning into somewhat of an uptight royal snob,_ Lance thought jokingly to himself.

"Thank you Keith," Allura said softly, a relaxed smile forming on her mouth as she pulled him into a hug.

"Don't worry your majesty, we'll get our act together," Pidge said holding his head high with amusement in his voice, his shirt off showing off his defined arms and sculpted abs. It was hard to believe he was once Green's scrawny little pilot.

"Let's hope so," Allura answered him back taking a deep breath.

It was a few minutes before they all returned to their workout regimens and once again the little gym was filled with its usual bangs, clangs and shouts. Hunk held his barbell while in deep thought. _We all shouldn't be this uptight! We have to get back to feeling like a team again!_

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hunk tossed and turned that night in his sleep. The disconnect in the team seemed to be overwhelming. It was like he needed to figure something out, but what? No one seemed to want to hang out together except lunch and when working out. Larmina was always crabby especially with Daniel being sick. No one seemed to care that Allura and Keith's wedding was sneaking up so soon. Lance's stupid comment in the gym was aggravating. If he wasn't shooting off his heat pistols, it was his mouth that was firing stupid, snarky remarks.

Groaning in frustration, Hunk finally crawled out of bed like a big bear who had been trying to hibernate. He then walked over to the window at the snowflakes falling softly like cotton balls. As he watched the landscape become blanketed with the white snow that resembled diamonds, he grumbled to himself. It should be Spring and with rain instead of snow! In fact sunshine was well-deserved! He would love snow before Christmas and not before Keith and Allura's rapidly-approaching wedding.

As he stared out the window, he felt his appetite escalating and the growls in his stomach alerted him check into his small bedside fridge. Those chili cheese fries he had at lunchtime would make a great late night snack. Opening up the fridge, the light inside illuminating some of his room, he pulled out the little paper sack on one of the shelves and as he opened it up, he savored the spice, greasy smell of his fries. They would taste better warmed up, but he didn't feel like heading down to the kitchen to do that especially since he was in his pj's and it was late at night.

Dipping his hand in the sack, he pulled out several fries one by one and gobbled them. Yum! Despite the cold sogginess of them, they were the perfect late night snack to satisfy the rumbling hunger in his belly. As he licked each of his fingers, he thought how delicious they were with the spice of the cayenne pepper, savory chili powder and cumin with a dusting of powdery cheddar cheese.

Just like that the idea slammed into him! Chili! He loved chili and why not have the team make some! His mind came to life as he thought of the team together in the great kitchen. He remembered a time awhile ago when they first came to Arus, the princess Lance, Pidge and Keith were all in there baking chocolate-chip cookies. Although at least three dozen of the cookies had burned, they had so much fun even though Nanny and the cooks scolded them for all the messy pans, cookie batter splattered everywhere including on them and in the princess's hair. They had a blast and Hunk now knew what this team could do.

The team would cook a big pot of chili to enjoy!... Wait! There was more to it! Hunk's brain when into action and it was as though wheels were turning and getting faster as thoughts poured out in a stream. The team could team up in pairs and they would compete to come up with the best batch of chili! That was it! Hunk's heart was thundering in his chest with excitement as his big barefeet pranced about the floor of his bedroom. He was gasping for breath as his brown eyes enlarged. How would he sleep now? He couldn't wait to propose this to the team at breakfast. This is what they needed!


	2. Chapter 2

**As much as I love Voltron, sadly I do not own it or make any money off of these quirky little stories of mine. If you read one of my other Voltron stories titled Pranks and Paybacks, there is an OC in there-Maurice and he is again in this story. I'm excited to be bringing him back. He is the only character I own in this story other than Winifred.**

As he hurriedly slipped into his boots that following morning, Hunk couldn't remember if he even slept at all during the night. His mind had been racing with thoughts of the chili contest he wanted the team to be involved in. His first step was to run it by Maurice, the head cook of the castle kitchen.

Speeding down to the kitchen, he gripped the doorframe with his large hands and happily spun around to face Maurice who was pouring pancake batter onto the hot griddle. Turning his gray eyes away from the griddle, the equally big man with the thick mustache, wiped sweat off his brown with his arm as he gave Hunk a curious smirk. Hunk stole a slice of bacon and as he chewed it with glee, he told Maurice of his plan. Being that Maurice liked the big yellow lion pilot, he didn't mind the stolen bacon slice and agreed to help set up the chili-making contest for the team.

Only minutes later, Hunk was seated at the team's breakfast table sipping his mug of coffee and working hard to contain his excitement as well as hide his huge grin. The team one by one and two by two filled the table. Two gigantic platters of tantalizing scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage patties were set down along with a dish of whipped butter and a mug of golden brown maple syrup. As everyone sat down, they filled their plates and Hunk's anticipation grew. Keith and Allura finally joined them all and Keith dished up two plates of eggs and pancakes for Allura and him. Pidge and Vince forked into a tower of pancakes on their plates while Larmina picked at her eggs and sipped her orange juice.

Hunk watched as Allura spread a tiny bit of butter on her pancake and then measured a tablespoon of the syrup which barely coated the pancake. She took a bite of her eggs as she groaned at the amount of cream and sugar Lance was dumping in his coffee.

"What?" he asked with a laugh. "I like my coffee creamer with a little coffee in it," he said proudly and Allura turned with a roll of her eyes, but managed a slight laugh as did Keith.

There wasn't much other conversation which was odd this morning. Everyone seemed to be dragging more than usual. Hunk sat with his plate full, but in thought of how he could bring up his proposal. Tapping a couple of his fingers against his coffee mug, he continued to think yet also taking in the wonderful smells of the breakfast as well as the sound of his stomach gurgling.

"Okay friends, I've got something to say," he finally blurted out as he looked at each of them like a big kindergartner who could hardly contain his enthusiasm for show and tell.

"What?" Lance asked taking a huge bite of a sausage patty. "They're now serving breakfast all day?"

"No," Hunk replied furrowing an eyebrow in annoyance before suddenly turning nervous, his palms starting to sweat. "Team, I think we're all a little stressed lately, Daniel's been sick, we're griping at each other..." he felt himself stumbling over his words and then took a deep breath while noticing them all looking at him wondering what his whole point was. He swallowed a sip of coffee and continued on, "The wedding will be soon..and.." He turned to Keith and Allura who stared and nodded him on. "Guys and girls," he added looking at Allura and Larmina, "I think we all need to chill out and have a cooking contest." His confidance was coming back and his face felt less flushed. "I am proposing we all have a chili-cooking contest here in the castle! Come on! It'll be fun! Think team building!" he nearly yelled exasperated and waited for their responses.

"Chili?" Pidge asked, his eyes open wide with surprise and he looked over at Vince. "You expect us to compete in making chili? You do cooking and we don't. You'll beat us all."

"Nope, you're wrong little buddy. I haven't made much chili here in the castle. I think we can all partner up and do this. Let's all meet later in the gym. I've got it figured out how to make this happen," Hunk replied before taking a gulp of his orange juice while everyone else just bobbed their heads in agreement.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A change of location came up and Hunk ushered the team into the kitchen where master chef Maurice and his assistant Winifred sat waiting. Winifred was short, plump and she was usually quiet, but kind and soft-spoken. She loved to cook as much as Maurice and Hunk, but she was best-known for her pastries and cream pies the whole team and castle staff very much enjoyed. She sat calmly with a smile, her hair net covering all of her ebony hair neatly as she watched Maurice speak as he looked over the whole group.

"Okay, all of you. The way this little cook-off or contest what you want to call it goes, you're all to be paired up with a buddy and you have to come up with your own unique batch of chili. Time is limited to three hours. So, three hours gives you plenty of time to cook and then", he extended his arm towards Winifred, "Winifred and I will judge."

As Maurice spoke, Pidge's stomach seemed to do flip-flops and his mouth felt dry. Maurice was a heck of a good cook. He didn't know a thing about the controls in the cockpit of the lions or any ship for that matter, but he knew his culinary arts. Pidge glanced slightly over at Vince. How would they be able to pull this off?

"So, what does the winner get?" Pidge asked curiously.

"Respect," Lance answered with a cocky smile.

"Actually, there is a trophy that will be awarded," Maurice said with a smile and Hunk opened his mouth at him in surprise. Maurice gave him a wink and mouthed 'I'll tell you later.'

"Hey, let's figure out who we could pair up with," Hunk suggested.

"It's you and me," Pidge said turning to Vince who nodded in agreement.

"Allura and I will be together, of course," Keith said while Lance raised his eyebrows with a mocking look in his hazel eyes as he mouthed the words 'of course.'

"Lance, it's you and me. I think we have the same tastes when in comes to chili," Hunk said before he looked around and asked, "Everyone paired up?"

Larmina stood feet planted, arms crossed while her narrowed turquoise eyes showed her obvious annoyance. "Um. No!" she hissed.

The team exchanged looks with one another as though unsure of what to do about her.

"I really don't need to be in this silly contest anyway!" she snapped with disappointment at being the odd one out.

Just then a clacking of shoes was heard on the tiled floor along with the familiar face of Coran in his fancy brown coat and meticulously tied cravat. He had surprised them all at that moment and he smiled a friendly grin before clearing his throat.

"I have heard the Voltron force is conducting some sort of cooking contest," he said to all of them.

"That's right. We're making chili. Each of us are paired up, well except for Larmina," Hunk responded as his eyes turned to Larmina standing still with her arms crossed and pout planted firmly on her face.

Coran's eyes scanned each of them as Hunk continued, "Are you here to find out about us making chili? Would you like to join us in the contest?" he asked eagerly.

"I love to cook! I just don't get the chance to often anymore," Coran reponded, his brown eyes becoming bright with happiness. "I used to cook a lot with Nanny before we got the castle back together and running functionally," he said turning to Allura, "all those years ago."

"I'll never forget Coran. You'll be more than welcome to be in this contest. bet of all you can be paired with Larmina," Allura said as she looked over at Larmina who's brows were now furrowed together emphasizing her displeasure.

"Well, if Hunk and all of you agree!" Coran said looking at the group.

"Welcome aboard," Hunk said giving him a pat on the back. Then Maurice peaked in and said that tomorrow afternoon at 1300 hours in the dining hall and to wear their own unique-style of aprons to set them apart from the other pairs.

"The kitchen will provide the hair nets and everything needed to prepare the feastful award-winning chilis," Winifred reminded them.

"I suggest you rest up and find your own unique recipe to work with," Maurice said sternly to the group.

As they all began to file out, Larmina stopped Allura, her aunt. Still grumbling she questioned her aunt much like a stubborn teenager that she was, "Why do I have to be paired with Old Guy? Why can't I just be with you and Keith in this?"

Because my dear niece, the idea is to be paired up with a partner and together you and that person, in your case Coran, comes up with a fabulous chili."

"Ugh! I don't like it!"

"I know. I know that you would rather be with Daniel, but it's just not possible. He's very sick. Larmina, Coran is a good cook. Just give him a chance."

One big sigh, but Larmina hadn't lifted her head up. Instead, she looked at her aunt through her lashes for a few minutes in silence and then finally raised her head.

"Alright," she replied, her tone sounding as though she were giving in.

"Good. We're all going to have fun with this, right?" Allura stated and as she turned away, Larmina followed behind rolling her eyes.

 **How do you like who is all paired together? See what they all come up with for aprons as well as chili recipes in the next chapter! Reviews are always welcome. Thanks again to all who have reviewed, followed, faved. :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**To the guest who reviewed in last chapter, I decided to take out Lance's comment as I couldn't think of some way in a future chapter to have him feel the need to put his foot in his mouth for saying something that could be deemed offensive whether he intended it to be or not. This story is about stress, friendship and making darn good chili and that's it.**

 **So sorry I have not updated in awhile, but my long-time boyfriend finally proposed to me and I have had wedding fever since. We've been trying to figure out a venue, a date, etc. and I've been eagerly looking at wedding gowns online and am excited to go somewhere and try some one! Eeek! I can't contain my enthusiasm!**

 **But alas it is now Voltron story time...**

Morning had already arrived so soon and as the team met for breakfast, they all agreed that they needed to come up with definite chili recipes. That afternoon was going to start the chili contest. None of them had much chili-making experience being that all their meals were cook and prepared for, so this only added to their already quivering nerves.

Only half of the couples had their custom-designed aprons already done and with them-well almost all of them. Pidge and Vince were a bit behind while the others had spent much of the late night working with some of the castle seamstress's on theirs, and Larmina stood empty-handed and fretting without Coran as she had no idea if they had aprons or not.

Keith and Allura were the first ones to show off theirs. In their hands they held white linen aprons with stitched-on, colorful appliques of faces of a deck of playing cards. Allura had all four queens while Keith's apron was of all four kings. There was nothing more fitting! Both of them beamed with wide grins and with their eyes shining brightly like two school kids excited at what they had created in Home Economics class.

"I thought it suited us well since well, I'm queen and once we are married and established, Keith will be king," Allura stated to the crew as she gave a smile to Keith. He sighed in deep fondness and nodded in return before giving her a kiss on the cheek and a rosy hue spread out on her soft pale complexion. The other team members oohed and ahhed. Who could beat these aprons?

Next, Hunk pulled his and Lance's aprons out of a black knit bag. He hadn't yet unfolded them, but held them up to show the team. One apron was a bright yellow and the other was red apparently to match their lions. "Let's show 'em what we got Lance," Hunk said proudly.

"You both look like ketchup and mustard," Pidge remarked garning laughter from the group until Lance unfolded his even more to its full length. Hunk did the same as all eyes stared at the aprons and everyones mouths fell opened.

"Look closer," Lance stated in a snide tone. On each apron, it read in bold, black letters "Kiss the Cook."

Vince rolled his eyes and as Lance held his apron up to himself at Allura and Keith, Keith responded, "No thanks," as Allura and Larmina snickered.

Larmina then happily strolled over to Hunk and gave him a quick kiss on each of his cheeks and then wrinkled her nose up at Lance in spite before turning away, her head held up, auburn ponytail swaying slightly back and forth. Lance shook his head, but smirked at her snobbish little snub at him.

Maurice dropped by at the table after hearing talk of the aprons. Placing his hands on his hips, he remarked, "Nice work on the aprons, those of you who took the time to make them." Then without hesitation, he cleared his throat, he added, "Now, you all have your chili recipes figured out?"

"We think we do!" Hunk responded with confidence.

"Not yet, but close," Pidge replied feeling the anxiety swell up and he turned to Vince whose intense brown eyes stared into space as though he seemed to share the same feelings.

"We know what we're doing. We just have to confirm that the recipe is what we think it is," Keith said as he turned to a giddy Allura.

"Guys, gals, come on! Getty, getty, going! I know this contest was sudden, but it starts in only a few hours. If you have some special ingredient, you better let us know now. We can only stock so much in the kitchen pantry and fridge." Maurice said in shooing voice as though to hurry them along.

Scrambling away with holo chairs disappearing, the Voltron team hurried to the control room to search for chili recipes. While they did this, Larmina still sat at the breakfast table, arms crossed like her mood.

"There you are," an older man's throaty voice called from behind. "Still breakfasting are we?"

Larmina instantly recognized the voice as Coran's. "I'm done," she replied before demanding, "Everyone has an apron. What's with that?" she inquired sharply as she turned to face him.

"Right here," he responded holding his arms out. "This is what I thought we should go with" and in each of his hands, he held out a long, black apron. "Best to stay with classic and show them we're professional chefs," He said giving her a wink as his brown eyes twinkled.

"Okay, I guess," she replied taking the plain black apron from him. Holding it out in front of her, she curled her lip slightly at the lack of any creativity or artwork on their aprons. It was just an apron.

"Wear a white blouse and I'll wear a white shirt. That way we will appear not only professional, but much like culinary masters," he said straightening his tie and lifting his chin up.

Larmina's response was a scoff mixed with a laugh. _He and I 'culinary masters'? Yeah right_.

She looked at the apron in her hand and then back up at him. "So, what about our chili recipe?" she asked. His response was a tap of his finger on the side of his head.

"All up here," he said with a mirthy smile.

"Humph!" she grumpily responded. _Let's just get this dumb contest over with,_ she thought.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The control room was filled with chatter and as the pairs researched chili recipes from Earth, Dradin and Arus they discussed amongst each other what they would come up with. Time, however was slipping away.

Keith and Allura carefully scanned for several vegetarian chili recipes most of them originating on Earth. They both decided on a mixed bean vegetarian chili and nice and mild. Neither of them could handle much spice.

Hunk and Lance were the opposite. They were all about the heat. They both love hot peppers and the hotter, the better.

"Jalapenos, serranos, habaneros, what else are we gonna throw in this?" Lance asked turning to his cooking partner, a sneaky grin on his face.

"A couple of ghost peppers, a scotch bonnet. I'm trying to come up with more," Hunk responded pulling up holoscreens containing spicey chili recipes.

"Chili powder, cumin, they all have the same ingredients," Lance commented as he squinted his eyes at the screens. Then he frowned. "Do you have to include beans?"

"Of course Lance! Beans are an important compotent to any good chili! We can't make ours without them!" Hunk emphasized. At that, Lance decided he would just pick his out.

Then Hunk added, "Beef is a must! We are adding some ground top sirloin to our batch," he said looking around as though secretive and in a quieter tone.

Pidge and Vince sprang into the control room, their shoes making frantic clacking noises as they rushed to a computer.

"Sorry, we're late to the party," Vince gasped and Pidge eyed the others awkwardly as everyone turned away from their screens to look at them. "But, we got our aprons," he added a both he and Pidge showed them off. Both were green with an emblazened gold lion on them.

"Nice work guys!" Keith exclaimed impressed with the designs.

"Thanks!" Pidge replied smiling and feeling a bit more confidant asked Keith, "So what's your plan of attack with this chili deal?" Pidge knew he and Vince were going to plan on a chicken chili recipe.

"We think we've come up with something that's definitely a great recipe," Keith said vaguely as he gave a secret smile to Allura.

"Does everyone have their recipes figured out?" Maurice's loud, booming voice called to them interrupting all the chit chatter of the Voltron member. "Cause it's already noon." Then as if a switch had been flipped, his tone of voice sounded with a touch of sympathy and lighter. "Look all of you, just do the best you can. I know this is quite a stretch to cook and now you're not only asked to do that, but be in a timed contest!" His eyes scanned and settled on Pidge, Vince and Larmina, all the youngest and inexperienced with culinary arts. Look, just do the best you can and if you burn it, it turns out awful, you cut yourself, we'll be there for you. You can do this. Above all, just have fun!" Now you better grab a snack or some lunch and get to the kitchen hall to gather your ingredients and cooking equipment. Chop! Chop!" He called out clapping his hands.

It was like a stampede of cattle as the force trampled down the hallways to the kitchen.

"Alright everyone! I've set up stations for each team," Maurice stated with Winifred next to him watching the Voltron team head in.

"Are you all ready to make chili?" Winifred called to them nearly laughing at their fidgiting around nervously and with wide eyes staring around at the appliances, cabinets and shelves.

"You all know your way around this kitchen?" Maurice questioned them almost militantly as he cocked an eyebrow up. He had the feeling that they didn't except for Hunk as he caught sheepish looks of confusion. "Okay, let's give a quick tour," he added as he and Winifred led the Voltron force around the kitchen. It had been a long time since they had been in the kitchen and it had been remodeled since.

"Here's where you'll find your ingredients," Winifred told them as she opened the large pantry that held several shelves filled with ingredients which included spices other dried goods like beans, canned goods, and assorted, colorful vegetables.

The force eyed the two stoves that they would share to cook their chili on and as they turned, Winifred opened the fridge and a blast of cool air hit them causing them to jerk back.

"Here is the fridge," she said. "We cleaned it out and stocked it with food you might use for preparing chili." Inside were large tubs of ground beef, cheese, condiments and more veggies as well as sour cream filling the shelves. "Take a few moments and grab your ingredients."

Maurice filled in where Winifred left off. "Here are the pots and pans you will be using," he stated as he slid the shiny, stainles steel doors that exposed pots and pans on the shelves. "Quickly teams!" he informed them as he clapped his hands together.

Hunk and Lance reached for the fresh ground sirloin and then grabbed three fresh tomatoes and canned tomatoes as well. Hunk also had two cans of black beans in his giant hands and then watched as Lance wrinkled his nose up.

"I guess I'll have to pick those out of my chili," he said scrunching up the rest of his face in disgust until he looked over at Keith and Allura who had an array of food items covering their entire counter space. Lance took notice of the three different kinds of beans. "Eeew! Should've known the vegetarians would be gathering beans for their chili. I think I'm going to start referring to those two as the bean king and queen."

"That's enough Lance!" Hunk replied, curtly with annoyance. "Pour some of that oil in the pan so we can sautee the hamburger and the onions together." He was getting tired of Lance's attitude and just shook his head hoping they could make this chili work.

Meanwhile, Vince and Pidge were working on theirs.

"Are they going to sit there and watch us cook?" Vince asked Pidge as he pointed his thumb slightly over to the two judges whose eyes were continuously watching the kitchen.

"I guess so,"Pidge responded his tone soft with intimidation of the judges. "I can't cook and I especially can't cook under this kind of pressure. Man, this overwhelming! Why did we agree to a contest!" Vince noticed the sweat glistening on Pidge's forehead. Their beans were soaking in a tub of water and Vince couldn't help but wonder if they shouldn't have been soaking overnight, but there was no time. The contest was today, going on now and would soon be over.

"Hurry Vince! Start cutting up the onions and tomatoes and peppers. You remembered to grab the organic ones right?" Pidge asked him right to his face.

Coran was calmly and meticulously slicing up yellow onions. Larmina was feeling annoyed that he didn't seem to be in any hurry or moving frantically in the kitchen like the others.

"We've got this," he said as he smiled to her in reassurance. "Do you know how to cut up an onion? Here I'll show you. Be careful though, this ceramic knife is very sharp.

"Ooh, what do you think of little firehead Larmina cutting up those onions? Shall we bet on her cutting her finger?" Winifred asked, her dark eyes turning towards Maurice. he couldn't help but chuckle at her questions. If Winifred was blushing, he couldn't tell by her cocoa skin.

"I'm more worried about Pidge and Vince. They've got fresh bean soaking in water. Do they expect to cook those in time? Maurice responded, supporting his chin as he looked intently at the two green lion pilots as they stumbled, fumbled anxiously within the kitchen.

Meanwhile, Allura was slicing onions as the tears rolled down her cheeks. She tried to wipe them away with her sleeve, but they kept pouring down. The onions were too strong for her to chop. Lance couldn't help but offer a smart remark.

"Ah Queenie, you still look lovely as ever with your mascara running." Before she could snap back at him, Keith stepped in.

"I'll take over Honey. You go chop up the peppers," he said gently patting his hand on her shoulder.

"Lance! Get over here!" Hunk growled. "I need you to finish cutting up the peppers!" Lance rushed back over to the station. "Come on! We don't have time to fool around."

Then in a quicker more deliberate tone, Hunk told him, "I need you to chop the bacon and add it to the ground beef."

"Ah bacon! That's our secret ingredient?" Lance laughed.

"Secret ingredient? Okay, I guess," Hunk responded with a shrug.

"Everyone is moving so fast. Are we behind?" Larmina asked whipping her head to look at Coran who had just opened up a can of kidney beans and a glass jar of Arusian tomatoes.

"Oh no. We're doing just fine, making time well. Don't worry about the others. Finish chopping those onions and peppers, oh and here's a jalapeno to add for a lttle heat," he said with a smile a he reached in the cupoard pulling out some spices and then a bottle of red wine. Larmina's jaw dropped open in shock.

"We're adding that?"

"Absolutely. Think of it as a sort of secret ingredient," he said smiling as he popped the cork on the bottle of the cabernet imported from one of Earth's many vineyards.

He carefully poured about half cup into the mixture of ground beef, onions, peppers and tomatoes and then added spices and tomato past to thicken. Larmina smiled at Coran as he smiled back.

Pidge stared at the pot of beans soaking.

"What will we do? Everyone else has their chili cooking. We're behind!" Vince panicked, his brown eyes enlarged.

"Alright," Pidge replied in a frantic whisper. "Dump those out and open a can of cannellini beans and those butter beans," Pidge ordered him as he began chopping up two large raw chicken breasts and throwing the pieces chaotically in a pot, several pieces landing on the stove before he scooped them up.

"Just dump it all in and let's add the spices," Pidge replied, his tone, increased with irritation and hurry. Vince followed his orders.

"They are turning things around," Winifred whispered to Maurice, her black eyes opened with surprise as she pointed her head in Pidge and Vince's direction.

"Indeed they are," Maurice nodded and smiled without turning to her, but instead his eyes set on all the voltron cooks. "I've been thinking. Let's get up and take a tour, check out their chili cuisines," he said smiling rather slyly as he turned around facing her.

"Ooh! Grand idea!" she said standing up. "The pressure is on."

 **Okay, so what did you think? Moved a little fast I'm sure. There is a lot of action going on in that kitchen! Who will be the winner is anyone's guess at this point. A lot more will be coming up in the next chapter. I'm excited! Please review! And if you do, let me know if you like chili and/or make it, how do you like it? Do YOU have a secret ingredient? I'm so curious! Thank you my lovelies!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello Chili fans! Are you ready for the next chapter? Here we go...**

Maurice and Winifred carefully strolled about the kitchen with their hands clasped behind their backs. The kitchen was now crowded and with a continuous frenzy of activity, pots clanging, voices yelling, whispering, meat sizzling in pans. No one seemed to notice the pair as they took in the sights and sounds. The air in the kitchen was warm and humid and it was almost as thought Maurice and Winifred could feel the tension thick like smoke and emanating from the Force. The kitchen sort of had a beat to it as though all six hearts of the contestants were pounding madly in sync.

Maurice and Winifred creeped up behind Lance and Hunk's shoulders first madly eager to find out what inferno they had going on in that pot of theirs. Lance pulled the lid off as they stepped forward.

"Whoa! That is certainly some heat you have in there!" Maurice remarked as he pulled his head back, the sting of the peppers burning his eyes a bit. Then pointing his finger at Hunk's gloved hands, he added, "Smart move! With that heat from those peppers, you get a cut, an open sore, I don't think we'll be able to peel you off that ceiling while you're screaming in pain."

Hunk nodded in agreement as his knife cut through a jalapeno and its seeds began to spill out. He was smart about cutting up hot peppers and didn't think Lance would be.

"Okay, so you guys are all about the heat and the meat. I get it," Winifred jumped in, "I'm surprised you aren't driving your competition out of the kitchen. So, besides firey peppers, what else makes your chili special?" she asked putting her finger to her chin in anticipation of their answer.

"Bacon!" Lance cheered loudly before looking cautiously at the other team members who suddenly perked at him. "Lots of it and ground beef, sirloin to be exact. But, the heat is awesome. I think with these mean little peppers, we'll be smoking out our competition," he laughed.

"Oh trust me. I'm almost there," Allura piped in as she coughed, her eyes red-rimmed. She had set out a small fan to blow away the fumes from Hunk and Lance's spicey peppery chili. Leaving Hunk and Lance's station, Winifred and Maurice moved quickly over towards Allura and Keith's.

"Your Majesty, shall I get you a medic?" Winifred asked, furrowing her brows in concern.

"I'm fine, really," Allura responded as Keith gave her a warm damp cloth that she took and dabbed her eyes with. Then she tucked a few stray whisps of her blonde hair back into her hairnet, "Ah! Much better!" she exclaimed and blew a kiss towards Keith.

"What do you have in your pot?" Maurice asked them with his head bent down towards the bubbling brownish-red stew. "It looks wonderful and smells amazing."

"This is our vegetarian chili, no meat at all in this one,"Keith replied happily, his handsome face glowing from a sheen of sweat.

"I see carrots in there, tomatoes, onion and lots of beans!" Winifred exclaimed. "It's so thick," she added while giving the concoction a stir.

"Yes, we have refried beans in there, pinto beans and black beans as well," Keith said, "but not all of our ingredients are in."

"What else are you going to add?" Winifred asked curiously, her black eyes focused on him.

"This," Keith answered her as he grabbed a twelve ounce bottle of dark stout beer and poured into their chili.

Winifred and Maurice turned instantly when they heard the audible gasp from Allura, her jaw still dropped at what Keith had done.

"What, what's that going to do? You ruined our chili!" she shrieked.

"No, I haven't. I saw in one of the recipe to use a dark stout beer. It'll enhance the flavors," Keith replied.

Allura was speechless as she stared into their chili that they had worked so hard on and breathed heavily. She just wanted to cry.

Lance was curious and walked over peering into the pot.

"What's up?" he asked nosily.

"Get back over here!" Hunk yelled from their station at him.

"We still have things to add," Keith said reassuringly as he gazed into her sea-green orbs as Maurice and Winifred left their station.

"Okay you two," Maurice stated looking directly at Larmina as he and Winifred approached her and Coran.

Larmina was busy dicing up white onions that seemed to resemble little cubes of white ice.

"How are you two doing with your batch?" Winifred asked as she peeked into their large pot. "Ooh, does that ever smell good!" she said with impressive joy as her eyes grew big.

Coran smiled proudly,"I just added some red wine and my little helper here," he said pointing to Larmina,"is doing such a fine job."

Larmina managed a smile a she looked up from her cutting onions. Coran had been managing to appear the older, but calm, cool and collected chef. _Maybe working with Coran wasn't so bad after all,_ she thought.

"Red wine huh?" Maurice stated turning to Winifred. "I think there's a theme going on here," "Secret ingredient," they said together.

One last station and one pair of contestants left. Pidge and Vince nervously fussed over their large pot of chili which contained partially cooked chicken, beans, raw onions and peppers.

"Hi," Pidge greeted them as he wiped his hands on his apron. His spectacles were steaming up and he had to pull them off and wipe them also on his apron. Vince walked over to him and managed an uneasy smile after wiping sweat off his forehead. Both of them had food splatter all over their aprons that they had worked so hard on.

"Pidge and Vince, tell us about your chili," Winifred asked the seemingly nervous pair.

"It's a chicken chili recipe. We found it and thought it would be unique. It has white beans and chicken and vegetables," Pidge replied feeling the urge to cower.

"I see," Maurice reponded. He gave the pot a stir and then turned his brows in perplexity. Stopping the stirring, he turned to Pidge and Vince.

"Did you add any spices to this?" he asked.

"Spices? No, not yet," Pidge answered, his voice trembling a bit. He couldn't help but dwell on the fact that they knew nothing about cooking and they were going to fail at this contest. He swallowed hard.

"How about a secret ingredient?" Winifred asked, her eyes bright.

Impulsively, Pidge then reached for a can of corn.

"Corn!" he stated nearly shoving it towards their faces. Both withdrew suddenly.

"Corn? What? That's our secret ingredient?" Vince whispered furiously to Pidge.

"Why yes Vince, don't you remember?" Pidge replied with a huge, exaggerated smile on his face.

"Okay, yeah I guess I did," Vince said playing along. Maurice and Winifred still smiling, their expressions unreadable, walked away.

Pidge's eyes grew intense behind his spectacles as he stared at Vince who was fuming. It was an all too intense moment for them and they still had to finish their chili together.

Maurice and Winifred turned back to the contestants.

"Okay all of you. Thank you for letting us see what you are coming up with. I know you were nervous and I don't want to add too much to that, but jut so you know you have only an hour left!" Maurice announced to the group.

The frantic pace picked up even further in the ktichen as Maurice and Winifred took their places again at their table peering into the kitchen. They couldn't help but remark at how the pressur was on.

"Something bad is about to happen. I can feel it," Winifred whispered a she shivered slightly in her seat as though anxious.

"Like what?" Maurice asked turning to her.

"I don't know," she replied staring ahead, her face a mask of worry.

 **Okay, don't worry. The kitchen isn't going to burn down! Just a little bit of a cliffie. Sorry, this took so long to update. LIfe gets busy, but I always make the time for Voltron! Leave a review. I love them!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm so sorry and it's been sooo long since I've updated-well only two months. I've been busy and I struggled a bit with this chapter. It's very fast-paced, but I hope you enjoy. I am my own beta, so Ido apologize for all errors. There is some minor cursing also. I do not own Voltron nor its characters, just my two OCs here. Enjoy!**

Allura slowly stirred around and spooned up a thick glob of the slop that was supposed to be chili that she and Keith had cooked up.

"Ugh!" she scorned scrunching her face up and curling her lips into a frown of pure disgust as the brownish, thick mixture filled with specks of red and green peppers, onions and tomatoes dropped back into the pot with a sad 'plop' sound. "It's so thick," she remarked.

"That's what she said!" Lance joked and Hunk burst out laughing as he clapped Lance's hand. Leave it to Lance to make an annoying sexual joke whenever possible.

"Yeah guys, why don't you go work on your chili?" Keith snapped at them before returning to his frustrated fiance and teammate. "Look Honey," he said gently hoping Allura's features would return to a more pleasant expression as his soft voice enlightened her with, "we haven't added the vegetable broth yet. That should thin it out to a better consistency."

Allura palmed her forehead huffly as she heaved a great sigh. "Oh that's right! But, where is it?" She asked as she began rummaging frantically in the cupboard above the stove and in their area before a shiney, silver can caught her eye on the open counter just feet away. All she could read was BROTH in bold letters. "There it is!" she exclaimed, but then took a second look at the label. It was chicken broth.

"We can't use that Allura. If we do, we won't exactly have a vegetarian chili," Keith spoke sternly as he peered over her shoulder at the can of broth and then glanced over at the other side of the kitchen where Pidge and Vince were cooking.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Larmina continued to chop away at the onion to add to her and Coran's chili. She was getting good at this and thought perhaps she could spend more time in the kitchen with him and Hunk making stews, soups, anything. She smiled happily at a vision of her with Hunk and Coran cooking up all sorts of good things. Maybe even Daniel would be well enough and would help them. Sighing, she sliced into a large tomato and scooped up its pulp and seeds that she diced into little cubes with her knife adding it into the chili. However, she did not see that she had dropped some on the floor and it splattered about.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Pidge and Vince were hopeless over their chicken chili. The chicken was still raw as evidenced by pink fleshy bits floating about in the water. They had poured it in their pan only with the veggies and beans that they had chopped and thrown in. They decided on scooping the chicken chunks out and flash heating them before returning them to the pan.

"Let's add the chicken broth after we take out the chicken," Pidge suggested as he turned up the heat on their pot.

"Okay, well where is it?" Vince asked whipping his head around, large brown eyes in search of their chicken broth.

"I don't know. It should be where our other ingredients are," Pidge replied sharply in a 'how should I know' tone. With his heart pounding in his ears and his mouth feeling drier than cotton, he could feel the desperation of just wanting to get done with the contest. He knew they weren't going to win.

Vince's eyes searched around a few minutes until he finally spotted the word "BROTH" on a can at the back of the counter.

"Found it!" he exclaimed while proceeding to open it with a small kitchen tool he had found in the drawer.

"Wait!" he heard Allura cry out from across the kitchen despite all the noise of utensils clanging, people chattering and pans sizzling. "That's ours! Don't you see!" she yelled waving her hands before furiously pointing her finger down.

Vince dropped his head down at the can now in his hands. Sure enough it read "vegetable broth."

"Vince! Exchange your can for mine!" Allura pleaded.

Nodding to her, he made a quick dash across the kitchen to meet up with her, but he did not look down at the floor otherwise he would've seen the red, smooshy remains of the tomato Larmina dropped on the floor. Vince's shoe then made contact with the sloppy, red mess causing him to fall and skid across the kitchen floor belly-down like a floundering fish skidding across, his arms outstretched with his eyes wide opened as his head slapped into one of the steel cabinet doors knocking him out briefly. As he lay, head down and still, Allura's mouth hung open. Keith picked up the can of vegetable broth rolling over to the side of Vince and also stood statuesquely in shock. The kitchen activity came to a sudden halt and everyone grew quiet. Winifred frantically looked at Maurice, her expression panicked as though she were yelling out "do something!"

Sickening, stunned silence permeated the kitchen for several seconds, but it seemed much, much longer. "I'm okay!" Vince suddenly shouted as he sprang his head straight up. Now rising to his feet, he shook off onion peels that had stuck to his face and lips. Immediately, the others crowded around him unsure of his health status.

"Wow!" Lance exclaimed, "You sure took one hell of a spill. Need a medic?"

"No guys please, we need to finish this contest," Vince said holding his hands out as though to push away the other worried Voltron members from him.

"I'm so glad you're alright Vince," Winifred stated, the palm of her hand pressed against her chest as though holding her heart that felt as though it would beat out of her chest.

Let's hope this explains your 'bad' feeling," Maurice said turning in his chair to Winifred who did not face him. "Okay teams, get back to work! The theatrics are over," he added announcing to the team as he clapped their hands and they jumped and scrambled about in the kitchen once again.

"Imagine Vince tripping and falling in here," Lance laughed before he returned to their chili giving it a few stirs and turned his head to cough a few times from the potent fumes. "Think we have enough peppers in here Hunk?" he asked.

"Yes definitely. I think we've actually overdone the heat." Hunk answered back opening both a can of black beans as well as a can of thick tomato paste.

"Um, it's hot, but I think it could use at least another pepper," Lance said after taking a cautious sip of the raging inferno chili.

Hunk furrowed his brows and grabbed a spoon. Taking a bite, he coughed a bit before letting out a loud,"Whew! That's fire!" Then turning to Lance, "Look it's as hot as Red's volcano. We don't need to add anymore peppers or spices." With that, he dumped the can of black beans and then the tomato paste into the kettle and began to stir.

Twisting his mouth to the side as though in disagreement with Hunk, Lance decided he could add another pepper. Just one more. It wouldn't hurt anything so he grabbed another dark green jalapeno and began slicing away on the cutting board.

"Alright teams, you need to wrap this contest up quick. Time is now twenty minutes left and counting," Maurice called to them.

An already sweaty, exhausted Voltron team did what they could to move faster.

Pidge stirred his and Vince's chili and shook his head while sagging his shoulders as though in defeat. He was glad that his teammate wasn't hurt although it was quite a scare.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad," Vince said trying to reassure his pal and teammate as he patted Pidge's stiff shoulders. He rubbed the lump forming on his own forehead where it had slammed into the cabinet. No doubt, by tomorrow, it would be bruised.

"Ever since we added the chicken broth, it's so runny," Pidge responded with his upper lip curling in disgust. His glasses were steaming up from the heat at his head hung over their pot.

"Let me taste it. I think it looks delicious!" Vince said picking up a small spoon and plunging it into the tang, bisque liquid filled with chunks of corn, assorted colors of bell peppers and chicken, some of which the pieces were burned.

"It's good!" Vince exclaimed slapping Pidge on the back. "We should be proud of how it turned out."

"Yeah, well let''s see what our judges think of it," Pidge said reluctantly with a slight shiver of anxiety.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Holding the can of vegetable broth in her eager hands, Allura poured every bit of it into her and Keith's thick, bubbling brown mass of chili. Quickly it became more of a thinner consistency with pieces of beans, carrots, peppers, onions and pepper seeds swirling about and the spicey, cumin flavor floating up to her nose.

"Ah, this is more like it," she exclaimed turning to Keith whose jovial smile spelled out, 'We did it' until they were both brought to a freezing halt by an inhuman blood-curdling scream.

"Ow!" Lance howled like a wild cat in agony.

"What the hell?!" Hunk shouted back dropping the spoon he held in his hand on the floor and stared at his suffering teammate who was nearly on the floor of the kitchen.

"Ah Gods! Ow! I'm gonna die!"Lance shrieked, his mouth twisted in a grimace and face crimson red with beads of sweat on his forehead. He held his hand out in a death grip.

"What did you do?" Keith and Allura hollered out in unison at their friend.

"I cut myself and it's burning me! Ah! Gods!" Lance screamed out jumping about in the kitchen in a clumsy way as though he were going to trip over his feet and fall on his face any minute.

"You dumbass! I told you that we didn't need anymore peppers in our chili!" Hunk roared angrily, his brows furrowed.

The kitchen was in a state of shock, several unsure of how and if to help Lance, but Maurice jumped from his seat to examine the injured and hysterical Lance.

"Okay everyone. Hold on. Stop doing what you're all doing for a moment. Let me see this injury," Maurice stated with utmost control and with one big leap, the big man strutted over to Lance who still clasped his hand holding his arm outward, his teeth clenched.

"Let me see that Lance, would you? Come on give me your hand," Maurice demanded as he reached for Lance's hand to take a look and then snapped, "Stop acting like a baby."

He looked at a tiny cut about two centimeteres in length on Lance's left index finger. A tiny drop of blood formed and oozed out.

"That's nothing!," Maurice scolded him while shaking his own head. "Put a bandage on it and get back to work," and then to the others "Okay everyone, get back and finish up."

"Yeah that's why you wear gloves," Hunk said shaking his head. He so did not want to lose this competition. "And I told you no more peppers!" he sneered.

"Alright, alright," Lance sheepishly answered putting a bandage on his finger after washing the wound and his hands.

"So much drama," Larmina said to Coran and he gave a slight laugh as he poured a ladle of their chili into two miniature bowls.

"Let's try our chili out," he suggested quickly changing the subject and moving ahead to her handing her a bowl with a spoon.

"It's very good," she replied after indulging in a spoonful and lapped up every bit of it.

"Let's start to clean up," Coran advised her as he placed a small black towel over his shoulder.

"What? We're done? Maurice hasn't even called times up," Larmina remarked, her turquoise eyes suddenly darting back and forth as if she was nervous. The two other teams were still cooking.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Maurice turned to Winifred, "Anything else? Is the kitchen going to burn down?"

"Oh gosh! I hope not!" she retored and gave him a slap on his muscular arm as he laughed.

"One minute left," she called out to the teams.

"Hurry up and pour two bowls of your chili; one for each of us to try," Maurice said after her.

"This is the easy part," Vince said over his shoulder to Pidge who was ladling their chili into a bowl. Vince then passed him one more.

"I feel better now. I think we can win this,"Pidge said looking up to Vince with a confidant smile that Vince hadn't seen all day.

"Yes! We got this!" Keith exclaimed in joy as he high-fived Allura. She leaned in for a kiss and an embrace. Their chili sat in the two bowls steamy and ready to taste. Allura dropped a spoon in each and for the final touch, Keith wiped the inside of the bowls with a damp rag before tossing his hairnet in the air. Holding hands, they walked towards Maurice and Winifred and in their free hands, they held their bowls of chili.

Refusing to look at Lance, Hunk poured two bowls of chili topping each one with a dab of sour cream and sprinkles of shredded, orange cheese.

"Oh come on! I'm all right now," Lance said.

"You're a jackass!," Hunk snapped back at his teammate as he headed out of the kitchen towards Maurice and Winifred. His cheeks were flushed and sweaty from the exertion and of his anger. At this moment, he felt he wished he had never paired up with Lance. So much for their chance at winning this competition.

Behind Lance and Hunk were Larmina and Coran carrying their bowls that they too set down in front of Maurice and Winifred. Coran stood with his hands clasped in front of him and with a proud smile while Larmina glanced over a the others and smirked at the angry scowl Hunk still had on his face.

"Well teams, this is the end," Maurice told them in a calm voice, unusual for him as he was normally loud and brusque.

"You all worked so hard during this and this chili looks and smells amazing,' Winifred spoke. "We can't wait to try and with the two of us, one of your team is going to be a winner."

"Wait!" a young male voice called out, "Don't start yet! I'm going to be a judge too!"

Heads snapped and turned towards the familiar voice. Could it be? No, it couldn't... Each of the team members stared at each other in shock. There was Daniel in his wheelchair sitting before them.


	6. Chapter 6

_**At last I finally have updated! I had hoped to weeks/months ago, but life got in the way. And..this is the final chapter of chili my dear readers. Thank you all for your reviews and for reading/following along.**_

 _ **I do not own Voltron or its characters except for Maurice, Winifred and Charlene.**_

"Daniel!" Keith gasped out in shock. His jaw dropped at the sight of their teammate and his black lion replacement.

"Hey Danman! What the heck! You were at death's door just a day or two ago, but wow man!" Lance exclaimed increduously shaking his head.

There before everyone was Daniel sitting upright in a wheelchair, his bright amethyst eyes shining, but with a trace of bluish discoloration that lingered on his skin below his eyes. Still, he looked like a patient as he was dressed in a drab blue and white striped hospital gown and baggy pants that appeared to be three sizes too big and white slippers on his feet.

"I'm feeling better guys and thinking much clearer," he spoke, his voice slightly shaken as though emotional and in disbelief. Behind him pushing his wheelchair was a nurse dressed in royal blue scrubs. She had her black hair pulled up in a loose bun with bits of stray hairs sticking out and she seemed to have kind blue eyes as she smiled at all of them.

"He's done nothing but talk about this chili contest he heard all of you fellow Voltron members are having," she stated looking around at the stunned group. "My name is Charlene,by the way," she said quickly introducing herself to them with her brown eyes darting as though she were nervous. "Dr. Gorma insisted Daniel stay in bed and undergo more tests, but he is just too persistent, so here we are."

"That's right all of you. I'm fine! I want to help judge this chili contest," Daniel announced. "All of you need to let me." Then turning to Maurice and Winifred, he said, "Let's find a winner." They both turned to each other in surprise before they nodded in agreement.

"Well, if you feel up to it, we'll let you be a judge," Maurice said taking a hold of Daniel's hand and shaking it.

Hunk smiled and said, "That's our Danny!" The Voltron team clapped and Keith went over and gave Daniel a kiss on his head as did Allura. There were more hugs and Daniel's grin seemed to glow. He definitely felt more energetic as though he truly belonged here judging his friends, but in a friendly way.

"Well teams each of you dish up one more bowl of chili. Okay, we've got sour cream, cheese and Winifred's homemade southern Earth cornbread to go with the chili samples," Maurice said looking over at his counterpart. Winifred was smiling eagerly.

Charlene parked Daniel in his wheelchair right beside Winifred. Daniel placed his hands on the table calmly, but he was enthusiastic to get in on the chili-tasting and being a part of the judging. He hadn't eaten much in weeks and what he had was tasteless, cold hospital food.

"I'll be back for you soon Daniel. I'm hoping Dr. Gorma doesn't find out about this," she said nervously exiting the kitchen.

"Alright, let's rock this!" Daniel exclaimed pounding his fist on the table.

All the Voltron contestants looked at each other again in surprise. Was this the same Daniel they had seen lying in death just days and weeks ago? He was pumped and ready to judge their chili. It was going to be quite interesting. Who would come out a winner? It didn't matter at this point.

"It all looks so good! I can't wait to dig my spoon in and eat!" Winifred exlaimed as she looked at each bowl of the contestants chili. She licked her large, plump rosy lips.

"I'm starving," Maurice added as he stuffed a wad of cornbread in his mouth.

"Save that when sampling the chili!" Winifred scolded him while smacking the back of his hand with hers. He gave her a playful grin in return and then turned back to the now anxious contestants.

"Okay, looks like we have Larmina and Coran first here," Maurice said. He looked down at the sight in front of him. It was a bowl of delicious, meaty chili in a thick, reddish-brown sauce. Taking a bite, he sighed with an expression as though in love.

"It's savory and hearty with the flavors just right," he commented scooping up more of the wonderous stuff.

"I love it. That red wine really did this good," Winifred said nodding her head and then biting into her cornbread. "Plus it compliments the cornbread," she added chewing away.

"This is great Coran," Daniel said and then after hearing a "umph!" he added, "Oh and Larmina sorry," as she smirked at her. Her lips were pursed and she narrowed her eyes at him, but he could tell she was joking.

"Coran, Larmina, thank you," Maurice said wasting no time to introduce the next contestants. "Next, we have Keith and Allura with their vegetarian chili," he said motioning for the royal couple to step forward.

"Tell us a little bit about your chili you two," Winifred asked them as she dipped her spoon and stirred the chili before giving it a long sniff.

"Well, Allura and I are both pursuing a vegetarian diet and we have been experimenting with different foods. By the way, the kitchen crew have been doing a great job with accomodating our diet," Keith said trying his hardest to hide his anxiety. He wrung his hands at his side as though trying to shake away the sweat and fear.

"We found this recipe and I knew it was the one." "There is plenty to enjoy in there including different types of beans and an array of vegetables we chopped," Allura said happily and turned to eye each of the judges before adding a simple, "Enjoy."

Maurice took a spoonful savoring every bite of it as did Winifred. They both nodded their heads which put the royal couple at ease. But, Daniel was silent and looked into his bowl while seeming to study the spoonful of their chili.

"Very hearty, full of veggies and the stout was just the perfect flavor enhancer," Maurice said.

Winifred nodded in agreement before spooning more into her mouth. Allura and Keith smiled and then turned to Daniel awaiting his critique.

"Guys, it's good, but I'm really into meat and this is all beans," Daniel commented shrugging his shoulders slightly as a few black bean along with kidney beans fell down back into the bowl.

"Allura, Keith, Thank you," Maurice said. As they stepped away, Maurice said, "Next, we have Hunk and Lance with their 'Hotter than Hell' meaty chili."

"Oh Boy! I'm excited for this!" Daniel exclaimed rubbing his hands together.

"My eyes are watering, just letting this bowl and its steam rise," Winifred commented dabbing her eyes with a hankerchief. She had a perterbed look as though uncertain if she dared to taste the ominous looking goop in the bowl in front of her. She was surprised flames weren't shooting out of it.

"Geez! How many peppers and what exactly kind did you put in this?! My mouth is incinerating!" Maurice shrieked as he took a bite of sour cream after a bite of the chili. He then slammed down a whole glass of milk, some of it dribbling from his bottom lip.

Hunk read off all the peppers he could think of. He was sweating and his heart pounding madly. All he could think of was how much he wanted to win this competition, but if the judges couldn't even taste his chili? Plus, Lance had helped sabotage it with his careless injury.

"It's too hot, I can't even get the full flavor of the chili or the meat," Winifred commented, her eyes tearing as she almost choked on the spoonful she was trying to swallow and downed a glass of water.

"Dudes, this is some kamikaze chili! Whoa! My mouth is on fire!" Daniel shrieked with his eyes watering. " But it's still awesome!"

Daniel's comment did little to ease the sting of possibly losing the contest. Hunk managed a small smile at Daniel before he slowly backed off as Lance sulked away.

Last was Pidge and Vince up for the judging. Pidge stood wringing his hands while Vince stood with his hands behind his back, a mask of confidence on his features.

"This is a chicken chili?" Maurice asked spooning up the beige mixture and letting it slowly drop from its spoon, bits of corn, peppers and white beans falling. It had thickened from cooling and Maurice took a bite. He raised his eyebrows and Pidge craned his neck forward in eager anticipation of what Maurice thought of it.

"Not bad. I think you worked hard at it." VInce smiled and caught Pidge's eyes.

"I think you did a great job. I love chicken chili as well as beef chili anytime," Winifred remarked unaware of a smear of chili on her cheek.

"Dudes! This rocks!" Daniel cheered and soon he had wolfed down the contents in the little bowl.

Pidge turned to Vince and they high-fived! What if they had won the contest?

"Okay contestants, all of you thank you for your chilis. You all did a fantastic job. Give us a few minutes to officially come up with a winner." Maurice told the contestants as they all grouped together.

Stepping out of the kitchen, the contestants walked into a small room off the main kitchen. It had a long square steel table with stools all around it. Each of them took a seat and sat with a bottle of water. Hunk espeically felt like dumping it over his head.

"Thank goodness, it's over!" Vince cheered with his fist held high. The others did the same and began high-fiving each other.

Allura's blonde locks spilled down her back and shoulders as she pulled her hairnet off. She ran her slender fingers through her hair and rubbed her scalp.

"I'm so glad to get this thing off!" She exlaimed and the others took off their hairnets as well tossing them on the floor. "It's so itchy. Wow, so much work and the judging was nerve-wracking," she said huffing a sigh.

"Absolutely," Keith agreed. He took Allura's hand and held it for a moment interlacing his fingers with hers.

"You know seeing Daniel there made everything better," Hunk said softly while nodding his head before adding, "I know we lost," he said with assurance, his eyes intently staring slightly in frustration at Lance.

"Hey, who knows Hunk. Look, I'm sorry about everything. Please don't hold it against me," Lance said with guilt in his voice.

"Can you Hunk?" Coran asked taking a sip of water.

"Yeah, I guess. This contest meant so much to me. I mean I want to win, but hey I don't care so much now. Daniel, Daniel guys" he looked at each of the others with intent. "He's doing great. He's a judge. Can you believe that?"

"Yeah! It's awesome," Pidge said. "Whomever wins, it's still great. We're all winners in this."

"Great job everyone!" Allura said. She looked over at her niece and Larmina flashed a smile back.

"The main thing is Daniel is doing better! This has been so worth it," Larmina said and she looked up proudly at her teammate Coran.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Okay, so I know who I want to win," Daniel said right away after the team left and closed the door.

"And which team is that?" Winifred asked curiously narrowing her black eyes.

"Pidge and Vince. I loved their chicken chili," he answered. He also didn't want to admit that they were his friends.

Maurice and Winifred nodded in agreement and began to give their opinions.

"I know they struggled in the kitchen, but overall I think they came out well," Winifred said of Pidge and Vince.

"But, I didn't like those burnt pieces of chicken floating in there," Maurice said tapping his fingers on the table.

Daniel sighed and nodded before resting his face on his hands. They were right about that.

"Its a no on Hunk and Lance's chili," Winifred said shaking her head, her black eyes enormous.

"That was so hot. How can anyone eat it?" Maurice said also shaking his head. "That was the closest I've ever came to tasting pure lava."

"I like it hot! It was awesome like fire!" Daniel said with a laugh.

"Oh honestly! Do you think you could've eaten a whole bowl of that especially in your condition?" Winifred questioned him.

Daniel took a sip of water before answering, "Probably not," he responded grinning.

"Keith and Allura did great with their vegetarian chili. I thought that was a hit," Maurice said.

"Oh yes, quite thick and hearty even without any meat, all those vegetables and so much flavor," Winifred praised.

"I need protein though prefereably meat and beans, yeah they're just not my thing," Daniel joked.

"Coran and Larmina with that chili of theirs. Wow is all I can say," Maurice said.

"Yes it was very good and they added wine to theirs," Winifred said.

"Yeah, I was impressed, but I'm still all for Vince and Pidge," Daniel said.

The three pondered for several minutes and continued to bring up more points about each of the team's chili.

"I think we know who the winners are then," Maurice finally said pushing back in his chair. "Do you agree?"

"Yes," Winifred said.

"Yes," Daniel answered confidently.

"Then let's get them all back in here," Maurice said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hunk took several deep breaths. Lance's eyes were red probably from the stress as well as the heat of their ungodly chili they had made.

The door suddenly swung open causing the contestants to jump suddenly.

"Okay, all of you. Come back to the kitchen," Maurice said, his deep voice loud and booming.

Allura's palms felt sweaty as Keith still held onto her hand. He managed a dry swallow as his heart pounded, not knowing that this little contest made him feel so stressed. Pidge and Vince strolled calmy back to the kitchen, heads held slightly higher. Having Daniel there made it not so scary for them. Would Daniel pick their chili as the winner?

Hunk and Lance walked back standing next to each other, both with their hands behind their backs.

"Okay, we've been discussing this chili contest and we've finally come up with a winner all three of us agree on," Winifred told them.

It was dead silent for a minute except for the madly beating of the contestants hearts. Then suddenly, Mauice announced it, "Coran and Larmina! Congratulations! You've won the chili contest!"

Allura turned immediately to her left to Larmina, her niece and hugged her. Larmina's turquoise eyes were almost bulging. Keith clapped and cheered for them as did Pidge and Vince. Hunk also clapped, smiling and Lance let out a few whistles.

"Yeah, we won!" Larmina excitingly gasped to Coran. "This is awesome!"

Coran smiled proudly in return.

"But, that's not all. Both of you each get a trophy," Maurice exclaimed as he bent down under the table and pulled up two shiney gleaming gold trophies of chili bowls with an inscription that read, "Voltron Chili Cook-off Winner."

The entire team clapped loudly as the two stepped forward to claim their trophies.

"I'm so proud of you Honey," Allura said giving Larmina another hug, her green eyes sparkling with pride.

"Okay winners!" Maurice said to Larmina and Coran, "and losers," he smirked at the others. "What are you going to do now?"

All heads turned to Daniel and they all smiled.

"We need to celebrate," Hunk answered. "Daniel is getting better. Look at him. A few days ago, he was practically on his deathbed."

"Yes, Daniel is making a remarkable recovery," Charlene said.

"Let's all eat the chili!" Vince yelled dashing back to the kitchen.

"Not me. I gotta date tonight," Lance said waving his hand towards the kitchen.

"With whom this time?" Keith asked shooting up an eyebrow in curiosity.

"Charlene," Lance replied with a lopsided grin on his face.

"No way! My nurse?" Daniel asked. he started laughing.

"Yep and I don't want to feel all gassy and bloated on our date," Lance added. Everyone laughed and a very pink-faced Charlene appeared beside Daniel. It was quite obvious how embarrassed she was.

Hunk took a moment and stepped back at the scene, all his friends were here united for a good cause. They got through cooking the chili and the judging. How did Maurice come up with trophies? Hunk shook his head and laughed silently to himself.

Keith and Allura were happily talking now about the wedding that they would resume planning. He could hear bits of their conversation and how Larmina was not going to wear a "silly pink taffeta dress"! Hunk smiled at Larmina's stubborness, but Allura didn't seem a bit stressed. Daniel, though, Daniel was so much better. Hunk felt slight tears forming in his eyes, his vision becoming blurry. That was such a surprise that Daniel was there judging. Hunk felt all warm and fuzzy as though he had a big, wool sweater on that felt so comfortable. He looked out the window of the kitchen. Snow was falling once again. Snow in spring. He should feel disappointed, but he didn't, not one bit. The team was finally united and that's what mattered.

 _ **I hope this made you hungry for a bowl of chili.**_


End file.
